Demon in My View
by Spider Baby-Firefly
Summary: Sequel to "The Playground Chronicles." Jenny deals with middle school and all its challenges, and Julian begins to realize his true nature as a Shadowman. Tom Locke, as always, complicates things, but Julian's working on a solution. JxJ.
1. Chapter 1

**IMPORTANT: THIS IS A SEQUEL TO MY OTHER FORBIDDEN GAME FIC, "THE PLAYGROUND CHRONICLES;" READ THAT BEFORE YOU READ THIS!**

**Now that that's out of the way, let me just apologize for how long I made you guys wait. Really, I've just been lazy. If I ever take more than two weeks between updates, please feel free to yell at me until I either post a chapter or give a viable excuse.**

**I'll be happy to answer any questions/comments you have about the direction of this story, so long as I don't have to give anything away ;)**

**With that, please enjoy "Demon in My View"**

**OoO**

Middle school, Jenny realized, changes everything. She was already a seventh grader, two years in, and she was just starting to get used to it. When Julian and Jenny started elementary school all those years ago, they were almost always in the same class. Teachers tried to keep them apart because they were constantly talking, laughing, and playing made-up games, even during lessons. Those teachers soon learned that Julian's usual mischief became markedly more malicious when Jenny wasn't around to balance him out. As a rule, Julian got Jenny into trouble, and Jenny kept Julian out of it.

During lunch, Jenny would sit with Dee, Michael, Zach, and, as of fourth grade, Summer. Jenny told Julian very firmly that if he didn't have anything nice to say, he couldn't say anything at all, so he would sit in complete silence at the table, making sardonic faces or playing with Jenny's hair to occupy himself. Often, Jenny and Julian would hold hands in the halls, and Julian continued to sneak through Jenny's window each night.

Middle school was different. Classes took place in different rooms with different teachers, and Jenny and Julian weren't always together. Julian had a harder time getting Jenny on board with his misbehaviour, and Jenny found it much more difficult to talk Julian out of it. Boys and girls were whispered about if they held hands in the hallways, and the _certainly_ didn't sleep in the same room—much less the same bed—at night. Oh, and the biggest difference? Jenny had a boyfriend.

Jenny had met Thomas Locke on the first day of fifth grade, and they kissed during recess a week later. Now, Tom sat with Jenny and her friends at lunch, while Julian stopped showing up at their table altogether. Jenny felt bad, and she missed her best friend, but she hand to admit it was for the best; Julian had never gotten along with Dee, and he made Michael and Summer nervous. Given half the chance, he and Tom would fight like cats and dogs. It was just easier this way.

All the same, Jenny and Julian walked home together every day and spent hours in each others' rooms, "doing homework" (read: goofing off and doing anything but.) Julian was his usual whimsical, devious, impossible self, and Jenny was glad for it. Every once and a while, she would glimpse a darker, almost dangerous side to her friend, but she was never subject to it. It was just another part of who Julian was.

So yes, things were different, but Jenny was happy; she liked her life and loved the people in it. Jenny just hoped that from now on, there wouldn't be any more changes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapters will get longer after this, and stuff will start happening—promise =] **

**OoO**

Julian had accepted some time ago that he was quite in love with his best friend, Jenny Thornton. What's more, he could tell that Jenny loved him back—she just didn't know it yet. Typically Julian was very good at taking what he wanted, but he knew that Jenny was special, so he decided to wait for her to figure things out on her own. It was frustrating, then, when Jenny began dating Tommy Locke.

Actually, it was infuriating. Julian kept all his anger, all his cruelty, locked up inside. It was always there, like a sleeping beast, and sometimes it scared him. Tom Locke's very existence made that confined monster claw the walls of its cage. Julian had never wanted to kill a person until the day in fourth grade when Jenny introduced him to her new "friend"—the words said with a giggle.

Julian wanted to do horrible, violent things to this boy, and he knew that if he was left in Tom's presence for any stretch of time, he would. So Julian had to avoid him. It annoyed Julian that he had to back away from a fight with the person he most wanted to fight with, but it was necessary. If Julian ever messed up and let this developing dark side of himself out, he'd lose Jenny, and that was unthinkable. There was no way around it: for now, Julian would just have to be patient.

But it was getting harder and harder to take the high road. Unbeknownst to any one, even Jenny (_especially_ Jenny,) Julian's hidden powers were increasing, strengthening, and that previously dormant monster inside him didn't want to sleep much anymore.

Julian was changing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hope everybody had a nice Thanksgiving :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Forbidden Game or any of its characters.**

**OoO**

Julian looked quite out of place in Jenny's room, with its pastel colors and floral theme, but he felt completely comfortable there. The boy had never given up his penchant for all black ensembles, and he'd started wearing his clothes skintight with a punk flair. Jenny knew that most of the girls in school had major crushes on Julian; they went crazy for his mysterious ways, wicked grin, and breathtaking blue eyes. He was, Jenny thought, the perfect combination of heavenly beauty and bad-boy appeal; and he was her best friend.

Right now, Julian was flopped belly-down on her bed, chin resting on a flower-shaped pillow. He looked like a young demon lost in the Graden of Eden

"How do you put up with my girliness?" Jenny asked, only half joking.

Julian beamed at her, "It's hardly my style, but I like your room."

It was true; Julian liked this room because it was so very _Jenny—_infused with her essence. He liked that it was pretty and feminine without being teeny-bopperish, and that it was filled with flowers—both real and fake—and that it smelled like vanilla; he even liked the cutesy posters of cats and dogs, and the way Jenny's parents stopped in "just to check on them," regarding Julian with polite smiles and wary eyes.

Now Jenny smiled at him, confused but grateful, and darted into the bathroom adjoining her room to try on yet another outfit. Jenny had never been the fashion-obsessed sort, but she was going out to a restaurant with Tom and his parents, which was, she told Julian solemnly, "almost like a real date." Julian had been grinding his teeth for the past half hour, but he was careful to conceal any signs of irritation from Jenny. While his friend was busy changing, Julian played idly with a little teddy bear Tom had won Jenny at a carnival this past summer. In a moment of casual cruelty, Julian ripped the bear's fluffy brown head off. "Oops," he muttered without a hint of real remorse. Julian considered fixing the toy, but he wasn't in a generous mood, so he waved his hand over the torn plush, making it disappear.

"So, um, what do you think?" Jenny's voice startled Julian as she emerged from the bathroom. Julian looked up and couldn't stop staring. His friend was wearing a sky blue camisole with a modest sprinkling of sequins on its hem, a light gray pencil skirt that came just above the knee, a little white jacket, and white flats with blue bones on their tops. It was a nice outfit, very much befitting Jenny's personality. Julian was amazed by the way it accentuated her slender form and revealed her slim, tanned calves.

"You look...very pretty," Julian said and immediately cringed. He should have acted less affected, or at the very least tried to sound smoother. Besides, "pretty" was not the word at all to describe Jenny; she was nothing if not beautiful.

At Julian's words, Jenny's face went scarlet. Julian silently celebrated her reaction, all the while feigning perplexity. "Um, well...uh, I don't think...I mean, I've got another outfit." Jenny darted back inside the bathroom, and Julian grinned. Jenny might come around yet. When she stepped back out, however, Julian's smile disappeared.

"Um Jen?" Julian raised a quizzical brow.

"What?" Jenny asked defensively, "I like these clothes."

"B.S." Julian said, emphasizing each letter, "you never dress like that, and you told me yourself that you think long skirts are sweaty and hard to move in."

Jenny shook her head vehemently. "I just don't like clothes that are too revealing, okay?"

Julian gave her an "Uh-huh, sure" look. He was most used to seeing Jenny in shorts, tank-tops, and one-piece bathing suits.

"Fine," Jenny said, giving up all her flimsy pretenses, "These are the kind of clothes Tom thinks I look good in. So what? He's my boyfriend."

As always, the "b-word" was like a little stab in Julian's gut, but he kept his face blank. "You shouldn't let him change you, Jenny. You're too wonderful the way you are," Julian said, than made a face. "That sounded terribly Hallmark."

Jenny was clearly affected by Julian's words. "Well," she said, considering, "I do _really_ like that other outfit..."

She went to change one last time, and Julian was happy; he felt like he'd finally won a battle in a very long war.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for all the great reviews—you guys rock! Fortunately, this is the last expositional chapter, as in, after this, stuff is actually going to happen. Please enjoy and review :)**

**OoO**

Julian's room was very, very different from Jenny's. The walls were painted a deep navy, and the curtains and bed covers were black. Julian kept the curtains drawn, so the only light in the room came from the UV bulb in the Creeper's aquarium and the TV's ghostly flicker.

"I ought to start bringing a flashlight with me," Jenny shouted of the blare of cyberpunk music, "…and earplugs."

The music fell to a less eardrum-splitting level as Julian fiddled with the volume. In the almost-darkness, his ice-white hair and super-blue eyes seemed to glow.

"Scared of the dark?" Julian teased. Before Jenny could retort, Julian cupped his hands together, and light appeared between them.

"Show off," Jenny whispered, but her face was a mask of awe. She reached out to touch the pale-yellow orb of light that hovered in Julian's hands. It was warm—a welcome quality, since Julian kept his room cold as an ice box. Jenny secretly liked how Julian sometimes used his powers when it was just them together; it reminded Jenny that they had a special secret.

Julian smiled, pleased that Jenny was impressed. In that moment, with soft lemon light illuminating Julian's face, Jenny could see why all the girls at school had monster crushes on him; whatever Julian really was, he liked every inch an angel. Abruptly though, the smile disappeared, and Julian plopped down on his mattress. The ball of light left his hands to bob about the room like a will-o-the-wisp.

"So how was your almost-date?" Julian asked, though it was clear from his tone that he really didn't care.

"Great," Jenny emphasized. She was used to Julian's arbitrary mood wings, but they were still frustrating. Almost defiantly, she added, "we're going out for ice cream tomorrow after school."

"Huh," Julian replied laconically, then gave Jenny a pleasant smile. "Well, anyway, the Exorcist is on TV. Kind of a goofy representation of demons, I know, but still fun to watch."

Jenny stared. She didn't trust Julian's response, or lack thereof, to the obvious challenge in her statement, and there had been an odd little gleam in his eye after he'd spoken.

"You know I don't like scary movies," Jenny said. She tried to keep the unease out of her voice as she sat down on the bed.

"Oh, don't worry, I'll hold you if you get scared," Julian assured, then, before Jenny could comment, "hey, are those donuts?"

"Yeah," Jenny said, remembering the still-warm bag of jelly and cream-filleds she'd picked up on the way to Julian's house. Most of Jenny's anxiety was forgotten as they tore into the confections.

"You know," Julian said as he bit into a jelly; the strawberry filling glistened on his lips like wet blood. "I think this is the best of the nine worlds because of Krispy Kremes alone."

"Are there really nine worlds?" Jenny asked. Julian had said such things before, but Jenny could never tell whether he was being serious or just messing with her. Often, Jenny tried to get a straight answer about it, but Julian clearly got a kick out of being cryptic. Today was no exception.

"One day, Jenny, I'll let you see for yourself."

"A simple yes or know is all I ask for," Jenny muttered. At this, Julian laughed, a musical, silvery sound.

Jenny wanted to hold his hand like she had when they were young, but middle school law prevented her. Because no one was here to giggle or whisper, Jenny buried her face in Julian's shoulder at the scary parts. However, when Julian started running his fingers through Jenny's hair, she stopped him, and not because of middle school law; lately, simple touches like that from Julian didn't make her feel safe or comforted like they used to—now they made her blush and go all tingly outside.

_That's another change,_ Jenny thought, _that could really complicate things._


	5. Chapter 5

**Review, and thou shalt be rewarded with a fun, fluffy Julian/Jenny chapter :)**

**OoO**

It was not in Julian's nature to play fair, but for Jenny, he was certainly willing to try. Thomas Locke, Julian had decided, was a mistake that could be easily corrected without resorting to tricks or dubious measures; if Julian over-reacted to the root problem, he risked losing Jenny, and then everything would be for naught. And anyway, why should Julian be worried? Even on a level playing field, dear little Tommy was no competition for the likes of him.

On Monday afternoon, Julian ignored the surprise on his peer's faces as he reclaimed his prior place at Jenny's lunch table.

"Oh good," Dee said in a contemptuous voice when her confusion ebbed away, "you're just in time for the barf-fest."

Julian raised his eyebrows quizzically, and Zach cut in to answer.

"Jenny and Tom are 'officially dating' now," Zach explained with complete disinterest.

"Huh," Julian picked at the ginger-panang curry stir fry his so-called mother had packed him, "don't you think we're all a little young for that sort of thing?"

"Thank you," Dee said, exasperated. It was the first time she and Julian had ever agreed on anything.

"Aw, I think it's romantic," Summer said.

Jenny was too busy giving Julian a dark look to add her opinion on the matter. Her displeasure let up slightly when her newly-proclaimed boyfriend put an arm around her shoulder.

"Who's 'we'?" Tom demanded, a defensive note just barely detectable in his otherwise reasonable tone, "and what does age have to do with it? Jenny and I wanna date, so we will."

"And I guess you guys will keep having your 'dates' after school?" Julian asked laconically, flickering the barest if glances sideways at Tom. It was Jenny, however, who answered.

"Actually, Tom's got football intramurals starting this week," the blonde said, sounding a bit glum.

"Oh, don't worry, Jenny," Julian smiled, "you can just come over to my house. I'm sure we'll find something to do."

"I don't think you should talk to my girlfriend like that," Tom interjected, glaring at the white-haired boy.

Julian feigned surprise at Tom's belligerence. "No offense Tommy, but Jenny and I were friends before you two even met. I know how I can and can't talk to her."

"I don't think you know her all _that_ well."

"Oh, we go _way_ back."

Something about the way Julian said that last statement made Tom go from clenching his teeth to swinging a punch at Julian's grinning face. Jenny and Dee, who'd been rolling their eyes at each other over how dumb boys could be, jumped up when Tom's fist struck Julian's cheek with an oddly subdued sound. The tables of middle-schoolers around them looked over, simultaneously alarmed and excited.

"Tom!" Jenny cried in shock and accusation.

"Holy cow," Michael, who'd wisely stayed out of the conversation until now, spoke up.

Zachary stared, and Summer put her hands over her mouth. Dee rushed around the table to hold Tom back, in case he tried to lunge at Julian again, but the brown-haired boy just blinked, looking substantially more bemused than Julian himself.

"I didn't mean to punch him," Tom addressed his girlfriend earnestly, "I just got really mad…and he didn't even try to duck."

"I didn't expect it," Julian replied calmly, "you should really learn to control your temper."

"Yeah, I'm…" Tom looked up at Julian, only to see that the blue-eyed boy was smirking. "…sorry."

Everybody at the table stared at their trays as an attentive lunch aid came to take Tom to the principal's office, except for Julian, who peered right into Tom's eyes and waved goodbye.

"Are you alright?" Jenny asked, turning to Julian worriedly.

"Oh, I'm perfectly fine," he replied seriously, just barely managing to keep a straight face.

**OoO**

"That really wasn't okay Tom," Jenny told her boyfriend as they exited English class together later in the day, "I know Julian sets you off, and he might've been baiting you, but that's no excuse."

"I know, I know, I'm a hot-head," Tom sighed, "It wasn't right of me, but…I really don't like him, Thorny. There's something strange about the guy. I don't think you should hang out with him so much."

"He's my best friend, Tom," Jenny said with a hard edge to her voice, "and that's not going to change, so you'd better get used to it.

"Fine, fine," Tom grumbled, then he smiled at the blonde and went to kiss her cheek. Instead of accepting the token of affection, however, Jenny dodged away.

"Thorny…" Tom said, sounding hurt.

Usually, that ridiculous pout on Tom's handsome face got Jenny every time, but today she simply turned from him. "I'm gonna be late for class," Jenny said quickly. Tom watched, frowning, as she strode off down the hall.

**OoO**

In the bathroom after lunch, Julian fixed his face. He watched as the blooming bruise faded from blue to green to yellow before disappearing completely into the skin. The pain was reduced to a dull, warm tingle of magic. It only required a miniscule amount of his power, and little more had been used to conjure the itching tincture Julian poured into Tom's school-standard chocolate milk while the boy wasn't looking. Julian smirked when he thought of how awkward Tom's visit to the principal must have been; Tom had already started scratching his neck when the aid led him off.

Julian didn't consider this little trick to be cheating, since it really had nothing to do with winning Jenny over. The truth was, Julian just didn't like Tom very much. Taking the punch, though, that was his first move, and it seemed to have yielded the desired results. Julian was interested in seeing how this competition he'd initiated would play out, though he was fairly confident that he knew how it would end.

_May the best man win._


	6. Chapter 6

**You know, I really do love you guys :) Keep up the awesome reviews! I do not own Forbidden Game or its characters—that's _aaaalllllll_ LJ Smith.**

**OoO**

"Hey, guess what," Julian said as his and Jenny's paths intersected at their accustomed street corner, "School's canceled for the day."

Jenny looked up at the cloudless blue sky, momentarily searing her eyeballs on the blazing, lemon-yellow sun. She'd worn shorts, a tank top, and sandals because it was just that hot out.

"No it's not."

Julian's Cheshire-Cat was in full force as he reiterated, "_Yes_, it _is_."

_Ah, I get it now,_ Jenny caught on quickly. Internally she squirmed, because Julian's proposition really was a tempting one. The day was simply beautiful, almost like summer, and—_Oh!—_there was that science homework she'd _completely_ forgotten to do, and school would seem so _boring_ on a day like today, with the birds chirping just outside the windows...

"Oh, is it? Okay then," Jenny said, and even then she just knew she'd regret this all later. Without another word on the subject, Julian lead Jenny to the trolley stop.

The trolley closed the distance between their street and the beach in about twenty minutes. The driver and several passengers looked askance at the children, but the pair sat quietly, so no one said anything. Jenny wriggled in her seat; her backpack seemed to way a hundred pounds, so she shrugged it quickly off. She really shouldn't have done this...

"Hey," Julian, who'd been staring out the window, turned, "_Round like an apple, deep like a cup, but all the king's horses can't pull it up—_what is it?"

Jenny, grateful for the distraction, spent the rest of the ride puzzling over Julian's riddle, rather than the potential consequences for her current actions.

"It's a hole, right?" Jenny asked once the trolley dropped them by the boardwalk.

"Yeah, or a well," Julian said off-handedly, then he grabbed Jenny's hand and said, "come on."

The beach was almost empty, save for some surfers, parents with toddlers, and people walking their dogs. Most of Jenny's anxiety disappeared when her toes sunk into the soft, wet sand by the water's edge. It really was a perfect day; the sea shone blue-green and crystal clear, and it sparkled under the brilliant, early October sunshine. Orange and black butterflies fluttered lazily, drunk on sunshine, en route to Spain for their annual vacation. One of them alighted on the fake flower adorning Jenny's headband, and she laughed as the tiny creature opened and closed its wings, slow and expectant.

"It's cause you're so sweet," Julian teased, and Jenny ducked down to pick up a shell so that he wouldn't see her blush. As she bent, the butterfly took up its flight again. Before the Monarch could escape into the open sky, however, Julian plucked it deftly from the air, trapping its wings between his thumb and index finger. "Y'know," he said, watching the little black legs scramble in a desperate bid for freedom, "some people pin up butterflies and put them in glass, so they can keep them forever."

"But that's sad, because then they can't fly," Jenny protested. She wished her friend would let the poor thing go.

"Yeah..." Julian released the butterfly at last, sending it flapping madly on its way. He and Jenny just kept walking.

Off season, there were no lifeguards to yell at curious kids climbing the jetty, so the two middle-schoolers were able to scramble along the stretch of basaltic rocks without incident. The rocks were warm underneath their bare feet, and the pair made a game of catching the seaweed-hued spider crabs that scuttled in and out of gulleys and crags. Jenny scraped her knee going after an elusive, silver-carapaced ghost crab, and Julian touched the blonde's arm to stop her in her steps.

"Let me kiss it better," he said.

"Okay," Jenny laughed.

Julian knelt down to press his full lips to Jenny's knee. Just like magic—for that was what it had to be—the bleeding ceased and the pain, minor though it was, disappeared. Jenny looked at Julian, alarmed, but he just smiled his _I've-got-so-many-secrets_ smile, and they traipsed on.

"Are you hungry?" Julian inquired after they'd settled down together on a broad, flat rock over-looking the roiling waters. The spot was warm and mostly safe from spits of salt water and briny spray that seemed to strike the the duo's faces with every wave that crashed.

Jenny nodded, and Julian produced a lunch sack from his book-bag. Julian's mother always insisted on making his lunch herself, and so got to try out all manner of peculiar recipes on her son. Today, it was home baked tamales laden inside with meat, avocado, and cumin. The stuffed _masa_ was sweet and spicy on Jenny's tongue, washed down with iced sun tea from the insulated water bottle passed freely between Julian and herself. The afternoon light was warm on Jenny's face and shoulders, and the playful breeze rippled her clothes and shook honey-blonde strands of hair loose from her ponytail. Julian smiled and talked with her openly and earnestly, heaven-blue eyes glittering with pleasure like sapphires in firelight.

So far, it was a nice day.


	7. BONUS CHAPTER

**BONUS CHAPTER! :)**

**This is a bit of a holiday present for my lovely readers—a random little scene of middle!school!age Jenny and Julian having some winter fun. Has nothing to do with the plot of the fic, and takes place about a year before. Enjoy and review!**

**OoO**

_Crunch, crunch, crunch_

Jenny Thornton's pristine, barely-used snow boots crimp across the coating of freshly-fallen snow. She wishes school was called, so she could make snowmen and drink hot cocoa and watch the Grinch with Julian. Snow is so rare in Vista Grand, so snowy days should be cherished. Jenny is just thinking this, turning the corner of her block, when—

_Whump_

Soft coldness explodes against the chest of Jenny's down coat like white blood blossoming from a bullet wound. In the icy air, Julian's eyes and smile glitter like frost. Jenny can't resist smiling back; Julian has always loved snow.

"Hey," Jenny shouts, feigning annoyance.

"_Hey_," Julian mimics childishly. His beatific face is ever-so-slightly flushed.

Jenny sticks out her tongue—incidentally catching a falling flake—and grabs a glove full of snow from a potted palm tree.

_Plshh,_

Julian almost dodges, but the projectile strikes his pant-leg, leaving a wet spot on the thigh. Gleefully, he laughs, spins on his boot heel, and takes off running down a side street. Jenny doesn't think; she just chases.

_Puff, puff, puff_

Ghost-clouds of breath tumble from Jenny's parted lips. Julian is nowhere in sight, and she wonders if he isn't using that dreadful disappearing trick to cheat.

_Crrsh!_

A lithe body flies at Jenny from behind a sycamore tree. She reacts instantly, using the momentum to land on top of her familiar assailant, but the two hit the ground rolling, and they tumble over each other like wolf cubs wrestling in the snow. When they come to a stop on someone's front lawn, Julian has Jenny pinned. The girl's blonde hair fans out against the snow like a halo.

Pine needles, cloves, and winter air at night—that's what Julian smells like. His bangs brush Jenny's forehead, white and gleaming like icicles hanging from eaves. Now, Jenny's ghost-breaths tangle and melt with Julian's own as their faces hover inches apart. It is perfectly still, but the air is charged. Julian's eyes are sparks of live blue electricity. Jenny knows, she just _knows_ that something incredible is on the verge of happening.

Any. Second. Now...

But the lightening goes out of Julian's eyes, and he flashes Jenny and easy grin. "Let's go ice-skating after school."

"Okay," Jenny says, breathlessly because she forgot to breathe.

Normally as clockwork, but a good deal later thereof, Jenny and Julian arrive to class, grinning and dripping chilled diamond-drops of melted snow that shatter on the linoleum floor.

_It was worth it._


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello my darlings, and Happy New Year! I usually don't have time to reply to reviews, so let me just say that I love all of you :) Extra huggles go to macymay201 and Smegs32, who I believe have reviewed every chapter—and of course, Princess Mariana, who has been such an amazing supporter of both "The Playground Chronicles" and "Demon in My View." Also, I'm sorry for the short chapters, but that's just the way that I write this fic. The next chapter is indeed a bit longer, though ;)**

**OoO**

"Let's go swimming," Julian suggested when both children were done licking their fingers.

"Whatever happened to waiting 20 minutes after you eat?" Jenny glanced up skeptically, but Julian just responded with a dazzling smile. The blue-eyed boy stripped off his shirt, walked to the edge of a rock, and swan-dived into the lapping, blue-green waves below. Jenny watched as his head popped up above the water—an arctic ice cap floating inexplicably in the Pacific Ocean.

"The water's fine~" Julian called out in a musical cadence that made his invitation sound all the more tempting. While Jenny considered, Julian back-stroked lazily away from the jetty to show how absolutely perfect the ocean was today for swimming.

_Well, What's another broken rule?_ Jenny thought, resigned. Luckily, she'd been planning on having swim class at the YMCA after school today, so Jenny was already wearing her trusty Speedo one-piece beneath her clothes. Once Jenny's top and capris were neatly folded on a dry rock, she pinched her nose, closed her eyes, and jumped as far from the jetty as she could manage. The water was an icy shock to Jenny's system. The blonde resurfaced, shivering and sputtering.

"It's cold!" She gasped accusingly.

"Feels fine to me," Julian shrugged, but there was a glimmer of mischief to his eyes. The Shadow-ling was obviously not sorry.

Jenny, who was by now used to her friend's behavior, didn't bother to respond. She layed out in her best Dead Man's Float, content now because the top layer of water was sun-warmed and pleasant. The golden afternoon rays felt lovely on Jenny's face, and her body had adjusted to the sea's slight chill.

"Beats math class, huh?" Julian's voice reached Jenny's ears on a cloud of Indian-summer warmth.

"Mm," Jenny hummed in agreement but left her eyes lightly closed.

"We should be careful though," Julian was going on, "I hear sharks like to hunt near shore this time of year."

"You're such a liar," Jenny muttered, though it was more of a statement-of-fact than an accusation. She knew Julian loved to freak her out.

"_Da-**dum**, daa-**dum**, daaa-**dum**_," Julian purred out the Jaws theme song, low and ominous, but Jenny refused to take the bait and tuned him out. She noticed immediately, however, when her friend's singing was abruptly cut off.

"Julian?" She mumbled drowsily. No answer. Jenny opened her eyes, looked around, and saw nothing but rolling azure waves. "Julian?" The girl repeated, louder this time as she turned herself right-side up in the water.

A minute ticked by, and Jenny felt a solid pit of dread begin to form in her stomach. What if Julian hadn't been kidding about the sharks? What if something had happened to him? What if she was next? What if, at this moment, a giant carnivorous fish was circling underneath her, ready to strike? What if—?

"_Aiiiii!_" Jenny shrieked when something cold and slimy clamped around her ankle, tugging the blonde sharply forward. Jenny thrashed madly in the water until her heel struck a firm-yet-yielding surface with enough force to make the grip on her leg loosen. With a whoop of victory, Jenny broke free and started swimming fiercely toward the jetty. The girl froze, however, when she heard a familiar liquid voice speaking from behind.

"Nice kick," Julian remarked, impressed. When Jenny turned, she saw that he was rubbing a red spot on his chest.

"You jerk!" Jenny exclaimed breathlessly, though her tone was saturated with relief. In lieu of replying, Julian mockingly waved a sea-weed wrapped hand at his startled friend. He was so busy being smug that he didn't have time to dodge the spray of salty water Jenny splashed at him. Julian blinked through his albescent bangs, which were now plastered wetly to his face, courtesy of Jenny offensive strike.

"Oh, you shouldn't have done that," Julian said in his most evil-sounding voice. Jenny was poised to kick away if Julian splashed back or lunged forward, but instead the boy slipped down, disappearing beneath the surface.

"No fair," Jenny complained to the open air, and she imagined how Julian would have chuckled in response. She wasn't nearly as concerned this time when a pair of lithe arms wound around her torso.

"Gotcha," Julian said in his friend's ear.

"Great. Now let me go," Jenny deadpanned.

There was a pause, then, "No, I don't think I will."

Jenny frowned. "Do I need to kick you again?"

Another pause. Just as Jenny was getting ready to squirm out of his grip, Julian said something completely unexpected; he said, "Rawr. I'm a shark."

Jenny couldn't help it—she burst out giggling. The arms around Jenny's stomach loosened as Julian joined her in the laugh. After a moment, their hysterics died down, and the pair swam back to the jetty without any verbal decision to do so; they both just knew it was time. Tired from swimming and unwilling to let the day end just yet, Jenny and Julian stretched out on the warm rocks and sunned themselves like lizards, lazy and content.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hi, hi! Been veeeeerry busy lately, but I _have_ been trying to write more. This chapter is a little longer than usual, and it's cute, so I hope that makes you all happy :) A lot of people are saying they want Jenny and Julian to kiss, and the only thing I can say is...everything in good time ;) Please review!**

**OoO**

When Jenny awoke, her hair was stiff and twisted from hardened salt, and her lips felt chapped. She stretched out her sore muscles and blinked, surprised, at the slanted golden rays of late afternoon sun reaching from across the ocean.

"Julian…" Jenny looked to see her friend snoozing on the rock beside her, limps sprawled like a lazing jungle cat. "Julian, wake up. We slept…"

The white-haired boy stirred, dark lashes fluttering up to reveal sleepy, morning-sky blue eyes. "So we did," he muttered drowsily, bones popping as his arms stretched upwards.

"We'll be home late," Jenny pointed out, far less relaxed than her friend.

"No problem," Julian yawned, "we'll just call our parents from a payphone, tell them we're staying late after school or something."

"Okay," Jenny said, mollified. She saw no reason why Julian's idea shouldn't work; her parents trusted her, and she'd never done anything that would betray their trust…until now, that is. "Should we go catch the trolley?"

"Mm, that won't be necessary."

"Why not?"

"Because we missed it."

"Oh," Jenny said._ I knew I was going to regret this._

"No need to worry though," Julian soothed, "we'll just catch the six pm. Want to get something to eat while we wait?"

"Well…" As if on cue, Jenny's stomach grumbled, "okay."

The boardwalk had grown cool and breezy as early evening set in. Jenny snuggled gratefully into the black-and-gray striped hoodie Julian had slid over Jenny's shoulders when he caught her rubbing her arms. They had a variety of options before them on the awakening boardwalk, from deep-fried hotdogs and milkshakes, to vegan brown rice sushi and kombucha. They picked a little table outside the "Raspberry Cafe"—a coffee and ice cream shop that Jenny's mother would refer to as "quaint." The middle schoolers made an executive decision to skip straight to dessert and ordered ice cream waffles. While they ate, waitresses giggled behind their manicured hands about what a cute little couple the fair-haired tweens were. Jenny made to correct them, but her mouth was full of waffle, and Julian was grinning.

"Oh, leave their illusion intact."

"Only if you stop stealing all the ice cream," Jenny bargained.

"Only if you stop being too slow," Julian retorted.

After paying for their sugar fix with combined lunch money, Julian dragged Jenny to his favorite place in Vista Grand: the Silver Ball Arcade, where a child could pay a five dollar entrance fee and play all the games he wanted for two hours. The employee at the turnstile, however, just let Julian in with a grin and a wink. _Julian must be a very frequent customer,_ Jenny thought as she followed behind.

"When do you come here?" Jenny asked, since she and Julian always spent most of the day in or near each other's company.

"It's open all night, and sometimes I don't feel like sleeping," Julian explained with a shrug, "and anyway, this isn't the first time I've skipped school."

Jenny marveled at the refurbished wood-and-steel machines. They were all old-world originality and craftsmanship mitigated by shiny finishes and freshly installed lights and sound effects. Jenny's favorites were the pinball machines, peculiar ones with little wooden cut-outs that flipped up and down, spun around, and slid on tiny steel tracks in intricate, clockwork dances. With Julian, Jenny's dormant competitive streak always found a way out. They played side-by-side, battling the machine and each other for points and tickets.

"Hey watch this," Julian said. He flicked his fingers towards the game, and Jenny watched with wide eyes as the impossible occurred beneath the glass.

Directly in front of the gleaming metal ball, a circle of nothingness bloomed like a miniature blackhole. It existed for the briefest of seconds, disappearing when the ball tumbled in, but Jenny would never forget how its edges crackled with supernatural blue light, or how looking into it was like staring at an endless night sky from which all the stars had been erased. It was…wrong. Unnatural. A terrifying sort of magic. Julian was smiling as tickets spilled from the machine.

"Where'd the ball go?" Jenny demanded in a tight whisper, "Is it…gone?"

"Of course not," Julian looked at her with laughing eyes, "everything that disappears has to go somewhere. I just don't really care where."

"Don't do that again, okay?" Jenny said, "I like it when you make things, like that orb of light, but that was…"

"Darkness?" Julian's voice had gone curiously solemn, "It's like a double-sided coin, Jenny. You can't have light without darkness. Or vice versa."

Jenny shook her head; she didn't like this sort of talk. "It's just a trick anyway, right? Just for fun?"

Julian's good humor returned when he pulled the massive stream of tickets free from the machine's slot. "It's a good enough trick to get you that giant stuffed giraffe you've been eying."

So Jenny forced the incident from her mind; she felt a little silly for over-reacting to a small, harmless magic trick, because that's all it was, right? Briefly, she chastised Julian for cheating but, she accepted the giraffe regardless.

Incidentally, Jenny and Julian missed the last trolley. This time, Jenny wasn't even effected—it was just another mishap in a long line of amusing indiscretions. She and Julian stayed the night under the boardwalk, using their backpacks and Jenny's giraffe as pillows. The next day, they took the seven am trolley and went to school in their wrinkled clothes, salty and sandy and feeling as though they'd come back from another world.


	10. Chapter 10

**Just got back from Canada! It was pretty amazing. Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!**

**OoO**

It had seemed as though Indian summer would last forever, but due to the crisp chill outside and the orangey autumn light filtering through the art room windows, it was impossible to ignore the calender date: October 9th. Julian and Jenny sat side by side at the otherwise unoccupied end of a paint-splattered table. Art was the only real class they had together, so the pair always stayed close for the twice-a-week double period.

"Y'know, Halloween is on a full moon this year," Julian said to his hard-at-work friend, "kinda creepy, huh?"

"I guess…but it doesn't really mean anything, right?" Jenny frowned down at her project, then looked sharply over at Julian, "Wait, does it?"

The shadowling grinned, "It's just that crazy things can happen on a night like that."

Jenny was not content with the half-answer and prompted, "Like scary things?"

"Yeah…" Julian stretched his arms on the table like a cat, splaying his fingers out over the pocked wood, "or amazing things."

Jenny sighed; _Julian and his mysteries._ She decided to let the matter drop and focus on her art assignment. It was a good one today; with Halloween around the corner, the teacher had passed tiny pumpkins out for the students to carve with Exacto knives. Jenny was currently using the small blade to cut out her Jack-o-Lanterns triangular eyes and friendly mouth, while Julian watching beside her. The truth was, Julian just liked how adorable Jenny looked when she concentrated—emerald eyes alight with the internal flame of determination, pink tongue-tip poking ever-so-slightly from perfect, parted lips…

After the peaceful silence had extended several minutes, Julian began riffling through the pile of fat, tear-drop shaped seeds and pale orange innards that slopped over Jenny's newspaper base. In low, sepulchral tones, he sang, "Great green gobs of gooey, grimy, greasy gopher guts, mutilated monkey meat, tantalizing birdes feet—all in jars of putrid purple porpoise pus—"

"And I don't got no spoon," Jenny finished with the bare glimmer of a smile. It was the song she and Julian always sang when they carved their own, full-sized Jack-O-Lanterns together in the Thornton kitchen.

"Exactly," Juliam murmured, and Jenny felt the cold slime of pumpkin guts on the back of her neck.

"Gross," Jenny muttered aloud, but in her head she was remembering the slippery feel of pumpkin gut chunks in her own hand, then the pastel orange blob flying through the air at Julian; the plop of strange vegetable matter as it struck either of the children, leaving wet and sweetish-smelling stains on their clothes. Every year, Jenny and Julian somehow found themselves engaged in such a battle, laughing and ducking behind chairs and under the table as they hurled handfuls of squash innards at each other. This game would inevitably end with sticky orange gobs slopped about the kitchen like mutant spaghetti and a highly irritated-yet-amused Mrs. Thornton scolding them.

"Careful," Julian's voice in Jenny's ear and fingers around her wrist jolted the blonde from her happy memory. She looked to see that in her daze, Jenny had almost let the Exacto knife nick her finger. She glanced at Julian as he released her wrist. _My Guardian Angel_, she thought. Of course, it would only have been a very minor injury, but Julian had made it his job to protect Jenny from any danger, no matter how small. "Are we hanging out this weekend?" He asked casually, "Or…"

"Uh," Jenny shifted in her hard plastic seat; she felt bad for always blowing off her best friend. "Tom wanted me to go to a movie with him Saturday."

"I see," Julian said, laconic as ever.

"You know, the period's gonna end soon," Jenny changed the subject, "have you worked on your Jack-O-Lantern at all?"

"Ah..." Julian glanced down at his gourd, "not really."

What Jenny didn't know was that he had been carving idle strokes into his pumpkin the entire time, not with his Exacto knife, but with magic—a much more precise and versatile tool. Now Julian could see the detailed image he'd transmuted onto the orange flesh: a striking likeness of the oblivious blonde beside him. The boy started at the sight; _that wasn't what I meant to do._ Julian very nearly blushed, and this made him want to kick himself all the harder; Julian may very well have been a school boy with a crush, but that didn't mean he had to _act_ like it.

As the bell rang, Julian squashed his hollowed orb cleanly between his hands and chucked the resulting mash in the garbage can, all the while ignoring Jenny's quizzical looks.


	11. Chapter 11

"So you blew off Tommy-boy to hang with out with me?" Julian stretched out lazily on the recliner chair in his basement, "I'm honored."

"Don't be weird," Jenny admonished, settling down on the beaten up couch to claim the single rectangle of sunshine emitted by a high-pitted window, "I just didn't want to watch some gross-out horror movie in an over-airconditioned theater with a bunch of sweaty football players."

"Well, you know I'm always here to watch kiddie Halloween films about singing witches with you," Julian grinned.

"I know, I love it," Jenny replied, then considered the latter half of Julian's statement, "Hocus Pocus, then?"

"I put a spell on you," Julian half-sang in his silkiest voice. Lazuline eyes glittered at Jenny from beneath smoky lashes.

"Har, har," Jenny laughed, gamely and with minimal sarcasm, "We have popcorn?"

"Well…sort of," Julian squinted at the bag in his hand, "My mom bought it. It's made with 'All-Natural Avocado Oil' instead of salt and butter. Or something."

"I love your mom," Jenny said with a smile.

"She loves you," Julian replied.

"And I love Hocus Pocus!" Jenny said, "So put the movie in."

"Your wish is my command," Julian muttered as he slid the old black tape into the VCR.

The movie was a familiar one to the middle schoolers, as they watched it at least once a year before Halloween, so they talked easily throughout it.

"So, I'm going to that big Halloween party at Town Hall with Tom next week," Jenny said about halfway through the film. Julian glanced idly over at her.

"Isn't that on Halloween night?"

"Yep."

"No trick-r-treating, then?" Julian asked. His tone was intentionally flippant, implying that this development was no big deal, even though he and Jenny had gone trick-r-treating together every year since second grade.

"Well…I mean, don't you think we've gotten kinda old for that?" Jenny said, fiddling with the hem of her shirt, "I mean, trick-r-treating is pretty kiddie."

Julian's eyes narrowed slightly. "Why is it that your mouth is moving, but I'm hearing Tom Locke's voice coming out?"

Jenny sighed; the problem with best friends was that they always knew you too well. "Can you just not do this? Please?"

"Hey," Julian's face softened, "you should do whatever you want to do. I just wanna make sure that you're the one who wants to do it."

"Well, I do," Jenny said. She felt a smile appear on her face because Julian always had a way of surprising her.

"Good," Julian said, and Jenny couldn't quite tell whether he believed her or not.

"I'm still going to need a costume, you know," Jenny changed the subject, "a good one. There's a contest for it, and the winner gets gift certificates to Dairy Queen."

"Well, I guess we'll see what we can do," Julian returned with a knowing grin; costumes were always his specialty. "What do you have in mind?"

"I'm open to suggestions," Jenny said, excited because this was her favorite part of Halloween, "but nothing over-the-top girly or princess-y…and no gross zombie-monster outfits either."

Julian nodded thoughtfully. "Okay…you like animals, right? Cats and rabbits are pretty cliche. How about…"

Julian made a sweeping hand gesture, and Jenny felt magic prickling her skin. When it subsided, she went to look in the dusty old mirror propped up against the wall. Immediately, Jenny was shocked by the image within the gilt frame. Her blond hair had turned a vivid orange-red, matching the pointed, black-tipped ears that extended from it without the aid of clips or headbands. Instead of wide, emerald eyes, Jenny now had almond-shaped topaz orbs. Her mouth and nose had morphed into a delicate muzzle, and black whiskers extended from her cheeks. Jenny was a forest fox, with a brown satin bodysuit replacing her clothes, and shocks of fall-leaf red fur trimming the neckline and sleeves; a fountainous orange tail was visible from the back.

"I didn't know you could do this sort of thing," Jenny breathed, struck almost speechless by the transformation. In the past, Julian had only been able to conjure outfits and face paint and such, not full-out body-modifications.

"I'm growing up," Julian replied simply.

"It's amazing, but…" Jenny cast a long and longing look at her impossible reflection, "I think I might need something more subtle."

"Say no more."

All Jenny did was blink, and the next time she opened her eyes towards the mirror, she was Cleopatra, wearing a white silk shift embedded with jade and turquoise. Chunky gold bands encased her wrists and neck, and a headpiece wrought from the same material rose from her hair—currently pin-straight and obsidian black—in the shape of a striking cobra with glittering, emerald chip eyes. Jenny's own eyes were tilted now, and rimmed with kohl and dark, exotic lashes, but they retained their normal Nile-green coloring.

On the couch, Julian whistled. "Mirror, mirror on the wall, whose the fairest of them all?"

Jenny's cheeks colored, but she said, "It's perfect."

"Of course."

"If only I could get Tom to wear something matching..."

"Maybe he could be King Tut," Julian suggested brightly, "wasn't that guy killed by his adviser?"

Jenny chose to ignore the comment and said, "This is great. Thank you."

"I hope you have fun at your party," Julian said in response.

"Maybe if I get done early, we could try to go out..." Jenny offered, feeling guilty, "I mean, I'll miss you."

"Nah, don't worry about me," Julian waved a hand, "and anyway, I'll always be around if you need me."

"Thank you," Jenny repeated, leaning in and kissing her friend's cheek.


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm back—for real this time! From now on, I guarantee updates will be regular but only if you all review! And I know this chapter is short, but don't worry, because the next ones will be longer. Please enjoy, and yes, definitely review!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the _Forbidden Game _series or any of the characters or concepts. Nor do I own any other movies, songs, etc. referenced. Basically, if you recognize it, it ain't mine. **

****

**OoO**

Julian really did love Halloween. The costumes, the excitement, the way people embraced fear and sought out darkness. He'd also always enjoyed rushing home from school to Jenny's house to create their glamours; staying out until late in the night to troop door to door and shout _trick-r-treat_; lying on the floor of his bedroom, trading gummy spiders and mini chocolate bars while the Lurker whined for scraps; staying up till midnight on a sugar high, laughing as they watched cheesy old, black-and-white Hammer Horrors and dancing madly around his room to "The Time Warp," "Monster Mash," and "Thriller;" telling each other recycled scary stories and urban legengs by candle light until they crashed and woke up in the morning with candy-hangovers; eating Kit-Kats for breakfast and shambling off to school like unusually happy zombies with backpacks full of candy.

But dear little Tommy went and bungled that too.

All the same, Julian wasn't particularly bothered by this year's change in plans. On the contrary, he felt an electric current of anticipation running through his veins. Julian was blessed with keen instincts—those of a predator, really—and now his instinct said that something was going to happen tonight, that the game was reaching a climax.

It was only logical, of course, today being Halloween _and_ the calender date of a full moon. In fact, this culmination of properties was a well-known event to Julian's kind; the day on which creatures of his world might find easy access to the human realm, without the use of tricks or traps. There was bound to be some chaos, Julian knew, but there were greater forces at work in the universe than his own devilish kin, and they would grudgingly abandon their respective worlds to assure that humankind make it through the night unscathed.

Pity, really. The party will be over before it's begun.

Knowing all this, Julian was not surprised to hear an odd rattling noise issuing from an old, rarely used drawer of his desk. As the racket intensified, Julian gave in to his impatience and opened the drawer. He watched, unaffected, as a vapor floated out, cold as midnight mist and dark as poison gas. Within the drawer, a slightly rusted Spider-Man lunchbox lay open.

_It must be Samhain,_ the aether said without real words.

"It's called Halloween," Julian corrected, tracking the dark mist's progress to the window with dazzling sapphire eyes.

The wraith did not respond, but it exuded smugness...until it bumped against the glass pane, unable to slither through. Julian could feel its disbelief. With barely-restrained anxiety, the smoke flew toward the door, bounced back, and headed for the closet. Julian smiled in sadistic amusement. When it went to try the window again, Julian spoke up.

"Don't even bother. I sealed this room against your rune, Thurisaz."

With disturbing fluidity, the mist took the form of a man and solidified, like a snowman melting in reverse. "And you managed?" The human-shaped creature quirked a skeptical brow, "that's one hell of a process."

"You're still here, aren't you?" Julian shrugged, "I know what I'm doing."

Thurisaz nodded, annoyed by his entrapment but grudgingly impressed by the means thereof. He was one of the younger Shadowmen, only approaching his first millenium, but the signs of age were beginning to manifest. Patches of olive-toned skin had turned into slick, greenish-gray scales, and one grass colored iris had hemorrhaged into an obsidian orb that took up most of his right eye. Black claws extended from the bony, lengthened fingers of his left hand.

"Any plans for the night?" The Shadowman inquired politely. His voice was slick and smooth as patent leather, but it carried an incongruous hissing undertone. He brushed waves of lustrous black hair over his deformed eye so that only its perfect verdant twin showed.

"Oh yes," Julian beamed at his elder, "though I can't say the same for you."

Thurisaz's visible eye narrowed. "Watch your tone, child."

Julian gave The Thorn a look—as if he was in a position to make demands—but thought better of starting a quarrel with an older Shadowman so looked away.

"Enjoy your _freedom_," Julian murmured mockingly as he exited the room, closing the door and sealing Thurisaz in. He had a busy night ahead. 


	13. Chapter 13

"Trick-r-treat, Thorny!" Tom cried jovially when Jenny opened the door.

"Happy Halloween," the blonde smiled at her now-official boyfriend.

"You look...nice," Tom said, and Jenny suppressed a flash of disappointment.

Tom obviously didn't _get_ Halloween. Even though Jenny wasn't a big fan of the freaky stuff, she had always enjoyed the holiday, and Julian made her appreciate its fantastical, exciting, chaotic nature. When Jenny was out trick-r-treating with her best friend, Halloween felt magical. Tom wasn't nearly as into it. The first time Jenny told him about her Cleopatra costume and suggested that he dress to match, Tom adamantly refused, embarrassed at the thought of donning a headdress, costume jewelry, and tunic. Even now, the boy wore normal clothes and a plastic Frankenstein mask over his face.

"Thanks," Jenny replied without skipping a beat. Honestly, she'd been hoping for more of a reaction, since she'd been psyched up about her temporary transformation ever since Julian had set the glamour earlier this afternoon. But that probably wasn't fair of her; "nice" was good enough, right?

"Anyway," Tom shifted a bit on the doorstep, "ready to go?"

"Mm-hm," Jenny hummed. She called goodbye to her mother and father, took Tom's hand, and set off into the gathering dusk.

**OoO**

"I'm going to the Town Hall party, Mom," Julian said on his way down the stairs

"Oh," the petite woman was at the doorway, handing out carob bars and banana chips to the ongoing callithump of children. "Have fun, honey! Be back by midnight, okay?"

"You got it," Julian bit back a smile; she just made it all so easy. His stand-in mother was not an inattentive parent, but she was an eccentric one. _Children need time and space to grow,_ she said, _the reason we spend so much time trying to discover ourselves as adults is because we were all told who we were as kids! _Perhaps true, perhaps not. Either way, it suited Julian just fine.

"I'll be waiting up for you," she warned playfully, "there are enough Halloween specials to keep me awake all night."

"Drats," Julian snapped his fingers ruefully, and his guardian gave a tinkling laugh.

Tonight she was dressed as a faerie in a crinkled forest green slip and gauzy gold wings she'd made herself. Her feet were bare, and her eyelids sparkled with gold glitter. In the jack-o-lantern light, she looked young and pretty enough to join a sorority; ethereal and blithe enough to really be this benevolent sprite, collecting herbs and granting children's wishes in some mystical forest. Julian didn't know why, but a sudden stab of affection took hold of him. When his adoptive mother reached down to ruffle his hair, the shadowling stood up on his tip-toes to kiss her cheek.

"Happy Hauntings," she caroled after Julian as he slipped out through the front door, and he chuckled.

At the end of his driveway, Julian paused and breathed deeply of the cooling air. It smelt like burnt leaves, excitement, and fear. In the breadth of a step, Julian's glamour appeared, cloaking him in magic. Was it up to standard? As a test, Julian lunged at the nearest trick-r-treater—a round-faced young boy in a skeleton costume—and snarled. With a shriek, the child dropped his candy pail and darted off, leaving the contents scattered on ground.

Perfect.

With a smirk, Julian plucked a Milky Way bar from the sidewalk and set off toward the corner with a jaunty strut. Just above the horizon, a glowing harvest moon had begun its ascent towards the clouds. Julian tilted his face up to the jaundiced orb and howled like a wolf on the hunt.

**OoO**

At town hall, loud pop music blasted from outdoor speakers onto a makeshift dance floor. A crowd of costumed kids jumped and squirmed to the varying beats and sang along with every chorus. Tom didn't want to dance, and Jenny was fine with that, so they got hot cider and caramel apples from a snack cart. They couldn't talk properly over the music, so they sipped and crunched with barely a word between them. Eventually, the flood of colors, noises, and sugar-buzzed children separated Tom from Jenny, and the couple drifted off in separate directions. Just as Jenny was deciding to enter the costume contest, she caught sight of a ghostly shadow with glittering red eyes slipping along the perimeter of the dance floor.

_It can't be— _Jenny started, but when she blinked the thing was gone. She heaved a sigh of relief. _Just my mind playing tricks on me._

But then—_over there—_another wraith with malicious yellow eyes that curved in and out of sight with a serpentine motion. Jenny rubbed her eyes, but yes, the creatures were definitely about; the air was thick with their presence. A wave of nauseous horror threatened to overcome Jenny, but she fought if off. The blonde girl took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and counted to three. Nothing changed when Jenny looked up, but she was composed.

_They can't hurt me,_ Jenny thought fiercely, _they're nothing without fear, and I'm **NOT** scared. It doesn't matter why they're here, because I can ignore them._

As Jenny came to this resolution, Tom appeared. Oblivious to his girlfriend's mental tumult, the boy smiled and said, "Hey, I've been looking all over for you. We should check out the Haunted House they set up."

"Oh, Tom," Jenny tried to keep her voice casual, but an annoying quaver stuck in her throat, "you know I don't like that sort of thing."

"Don't be silly, Thorny," Tom grabbed her hand and started walking like the whole thing was decided, "C'mon."

"No," Jenny shook her head, even as Tom tugged at her wrist, "just go without me."

"Don't be such a scaredy-cat," Tom teased, and Jenny felt stung despite his playful tone, "I'll protect you from the ghoulies and ghosties and long-legged beasties."

_You can't, though,_ Jenny thought bleakly, _you don't even believe in them. _But she knew what lurked in the dark, and Tom could never protect her from it—try though he might.

"I don't _want_ to," Jenny said, forcefully enough to make Tom stop. Despite her no-nonsense tone, she looked up at her boyfriend with pleading eyes. Jenny willed him to understand; it wasn't as if she _wanted_ to disappoint her boyfriend, but the glimpses of Shadowmen made her nervous.

"Thor-_ny_," Tom whined piteously, staring the blonde down with ludicrous, sad puppy eyes. It was just...too cute in the most ridiculous way. That stupid expression got Jenny every time, and he knew it.

"Oh, all _right,_" Jenny sighed reluctantly. Maybe her caving wasn't a such a bad thing—she could handle five minutes in a dark clapboard maze.

Tom whooped and sprinted over to "The Slaughterhouse." Red dye bloodstains and plastic body parts were set out to scare children, but Jenny's eyes were snared by the vaporous forms that hung about the attraction like a thick smoke. Indeed, those that noticed their presence wrote it off as an effect from a fog machine. A shiver jolted through Jenny's spine. Of course they would be here—the place with the highest level of fear. Jenny and Tom were at the front of the line now, and Jenny knew her choices were limited.

_No going back now, _Jenny thought, grim but determined. With Tom's hand in hers, she passed through the black crepe curtain and into the depths of The Slaughterhouse.


	14. Chapter 14

Inside the Slaughterhouse, it was blackness. Jenny clenched Tom's fingers tight, like a rosary. They were in here, the creatures. She could taste their presence with every breath, like frost and ashes on her tongue. _Step one, step two, step three _through the dark, with Tom dragging her along impatiently. Jenny glimpsed a sanguine light up ahead and breathed a sigh of relief.

"_Arghh!"_ A hairy, fanged face sprung up in front of Jenny's own. She shrieked, and Tom chuckled. The actor had startled Jenny, but what really chilled her blood was the feral set of eyes glimmering just above the wolf-man's head.

"C'mon Thorny, it's just a mask," Tom was saying as he hurried her forward. Jenny pinched her lips shut, dread spreading its chilled fingers through her stomach as they stepped onto a twisting path lit with flashing strobes.

_Oh God,_ Jenny sucked in a breath, _they're everywhere. _In this dizzying crimson corridor, the actors hid round every corner, and each one was oblivious to the vapors that hung behind them like—well, like shadows. They converged on Jenny as her eyes jerked from face to face in dazzled horror. The girl felt like she was on a nightmare carousel that was spinning out of control. Blood, teeth, and monstrous grins surrounded Jenny until she couldn't tell the painted actors from the real demons.

"Tom," Jenny was gasping because the air felt thin, "I want to leave."

No answer, because Tom wasn't _there._ He'd left her. When Jenny finally realized this, she screamed. Her breath came hard and fast as the clap of her sandles on the hard-packed dirt. Jenny didn't know where she was going—she just wanted _out._ Darkness surrounded her once more, but Jenny scarcely noticed because her mind was on overdrive. Memories she'd tried to forget, tried to move passed, swirled up into her consciousness like foul fumes from a witch's cauldron.

_**Flash,** frost and evil and the glitter of eyes from Grandpa Everson's closet._

_**Flash, **the vortex swirling out, cajoling Jenny in hissing voices while those eyes came ever closer._

_**Flash,** the scrabble and ache of Jenny's feet against jagged ice in her futile attempts to pull Grandpa back._

_**Flash**, his nails slashing Jenny's skin to make her let go._

_**Flash**, terror in every line of his face as he disappeared forever._

Jenny's running had slowed, for she was trembling all over, but her mind kept thumping _out, out, I must get out, _until the mantra became a meaningless static buzz. Light-headed and lost, Jenny sensed her knees start to give out. Before she could fall, however, the girl felt an arm wind around her waist—followed by another hand over her mouth so she couldn't scream.

Fight-or-flight had started to set in when Jenny's captor whispered in her ear, "Sh, Jen, it's me."

That water-over-rock voice was instantly recognizable; soothing and familiar. The blonde relaxed and allowed herself to be dragged to a hidden corner of the haunted house, away from he light and noise and chaos. Julian did not let go, which was good because Jenny didn't know if she could stand on her own. His arms felt nice around her waist and shoulders, supporting her like always.

"Something happened," Jenny gasped when she found the words, "I don't know. I just—"

"You're having a panic attack. PTSD," Julian said, his tone gentle but firm, "you have to breathe. _Slowly._"

Up until then, Jenny hadn't even realized she was hyperventilating. She heeded her friend's advice and took a few steady breaths in through her nose and out through her mouth. As she focused on pumping air through her lungs, Jenny felt the nightmare flashes fade away, and the real world sharpen around her. "Why are you here?" The girl asked once she'd calmed down a bit.

Julian shrugged and held up a leering red devil mask up for Jenny's inspection. "I guess you could say I'm volunteering. You know I like getting a good shriek out of people."

"Yeah..." Jenny swayed on her feet as the aftermath of her episode hit. It suddenly felt very hot in this alcove... "Oh! The room's kinda spinning. I wanna get out of—" Now Jenny's legs_ did_ give way, and she fell against her best friend's chest "—here."

Jenny looked up now, her surprised emerald eyes meeting inscrutable sapphires. She could feel the sinewy muscle that had begun to build on Julian's chest and torso; she could feel him breathing, and she could feel his heartbeat.

"Breathe, Jenny," Julian murmured, but Jenny had forgotten how because his face was so close to her own. The impossible blue of his eyes filled her vision like the brightest summer sky. The air quivered with electricity, some tremendous possibility that was about to unfurl, and then—like a coil springing forward—it did.

**OoO**

_Such a simple thing, a kiss. There surely is some magic to it, because how else could a simple touch, a fleeting brush of lips-against-lips mean so much? One kiss, and life can change irrevocably..._

_Or not._

_Sometimes, a kiss is just a kiss._

**OoO**

Jenny was reeling because Julian's hand was in her hair, and he was kissing her. _Kissing_ her. _And she was kissing him back!_ It was slow, tentative, because neither of them were accustomed to this sort of thing, but it was never awkward, never clumsy. Their lips fit together like yin and yang, filling each others' empty space and becoming whole. Their mouths were dancing a soft, shy waltz. So curious their lips were, probing, _let me know you,_ and then, with a flash of strobe light and a distant yelp, the spell was broken.

Jenny jerked away, gasping. _What had they done?_


	15. Chapter 15

Jenny blinked once. Twice. Stared. Julian's eyes were pinned to hers. Glowing oddly in the dark with their own brilliant blue light as strange and rare and wonderful as portals to another world. Right now though, _this_ world was overwhelming enough.

"You kissed me," the blonde blurted as soon as she regained her ability to speak, "and I kissed you back. We kissed."

_And I liked it!_ Her mind put in wildly.

"Yes," Julian replied with impossible calm, "we did."

"I need to get out of here," Jenny said. Julian nodded and crooked a finger.

Half-dazed, Jenny followed her friend through a short but twisted maze of black wood barriers, across a red lit path, and out an emergency exit. Now, in the brisk October night, Jenny could breathe. The girl gratefully drew in gulps of smoke-scented air that cleared her throat and cooled her lungs. Once Jenny started feeling better, the madness that had just come to pass hit her full-force.

"We kissed!" She declared again, part amazed and part horrifed.

"You keep saying that," Julian chimed in an almost-sing-song. He was brushing some dust off the sleeve of his costume and trying to hold back the smile that kept twitching up his lips. It was a losing battle.

For a moment, Jenny felt lost. In the strange yellow light that poured unclouded from the full harvest moon, Julian was beautiful beyond reason. His silvery hair was tinted, rendered white gold, and his thick dark lashes were downcast to offer just teasing hints of lapis-lazuli. What's more, his full lips bore a faint, unconscious upward curve, and his entire being seemed to glow with delight. Effervescent.

Nonetheless, Jenny regained her breath and immediately began to reason with herself. "It was just...temporary insanity, right? From Halloween, and the haunted house and my panic attack, and—and that stupid _moon—!_"

"Jen," Julian caught one of Jenny's wrists, which had been flailing about in her attempts to rationalize the situation. He held the captive wrist gently in his hands, and when he spoke, Jenny had never known his voice could be so soft, "It happened. You can't take it away."

"Well, I know _that_, but—" Jenny paused, frowned. Before she could continue protesting, Julian stopped her.

"Nothing you could have said or done would've stopped it from happening. Same goes for me. If not tonight, it would've happened sooner or later."

At this, Jenny stilled and asked "Why?"

"Because it was meant to happen," Julian answered, as though all this made perfect sense.

"No," Jenny said, then with more force, "_No,_ it wasn't. It _never_ was."

"Jenny—" Julian began, but Jenny couldn't let her go on; couldn't let him keep talking to her in that strange, tender, mesmerizing voice that made her heart feel like it was melting.

"It shouldn't have happened at all, I mean, I have—" Jenny cut off as the most horrible realization yet struck her, "_Tom._"

"He's not right for you," Julian said, but Jenny wasn't listening.

"And why are you acting like this is _okay?_" She demanded, "like you're _happy_ about it?"

"Because I am," Julian stated, and that made Jenny go very quiet.

"You...are?" Jenny asked in a near-whisper, emerald eyes wide with too much shock.

"I—" Julian looked down, uncertain for the first time Jenny had ever known. But then he returned his eyes to the blonde, calm and intense, "I love you, Jenny."

Her mind was already racing over the implications of those words when Jenny muttered numbly, "Well of course I love you too." Julian didn't respond, just waited for Jenny's mouth and brain to catch up with each other. When they did, she gasped, "Oh. _Oh._ Oh no," Jenny shook her head frantically, "We're _friends._"

"We're supposed to be more," Julian insisted.

"_No_," Jenny repeated, as though she could make all this go away with enough vehemence.

"I know it's hard to understand, but Jenny," Julian reached up to touch Jenny's cheek with his fingertips, "I really do love you. I have ever since that summer before second grade."

Jenny shivered, but not from the cold. Julian's lips were softly parted, and his eyes were wider than usual; painfully sincere. He looked wonderstruck, young and vulnerable, and that scared Jenny. When she jerked away from his touch, he couldn't hide the hurt on his face any more than she could hide the goosebumps on her arms from Julian's words and fingers.

"But I have a boyfriend," Jenny protested, wincing at how inelegant a statement that was. Julian stepped back, hand dropping. More hurt in his eyes. Jenny couldn't let him talk again, but she couldn't just say nothing either. The look he was giving her was just so _un_-Julian that it made Jenny's heart hurt. The next time she spoke, she forced her voice to be as soft and reasonable as possible. "That kiss—it was an accident. A mistake. It was no one's fault, but it doesn't mean anything. And it can't happen again."

Just like some magic trick, all emotion was swept from Julian's face, and a veil of lashes drooped to cover his eyes. "Oh. Right. Absolutely," he murmured tonelessly.

"God, Julian, I'm so sorry," Jenny started, but then Julian was looking at her with eyes as still and inscrutable as ice-covered pools.

He was smiling now—a small, pleasant, distant smile that was as unsettling as it was lovely "No need. I see how it is," Julian said, tone measured and light and somehow mechanical. "A misunderstanding."

"I didn't mean—"

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes, but Julian—"

"Good. I'll be going then," he gave a slight, cordial nod before adding icily, "goodnight, Jenny."

And then he disappeared. Simply dematerialized into shadows cast by the ghostly moon. Gone. And all Jenny could do was stare, trembling, at the air where he'd just been.


	16. Chapter 16

**And here I am, checking back in with the penultimate chapter. I'm sorry to have kept all of you waiting so long! I hope you haven't completely lost faith in me and can still enjoy the story ^_^**

**.**

Julian's boots slammed the uneven concrete of Montevideo Street as he forged his way through a tangle of cracked sidewalk and abandoned buildings. Usually when Julian walked, he was cat-quiet and graceful, but now he moved violently, stomping and kicking at pieces of trash. He needed to make noise right now, to lash out. Magic and danger crackled around him like electricity around a live wire.

_How could she say no?_

Julian's teeth clenched so hard it hurt. 

_She felt the same way I did._

But not as tightly as his fists, and not as bad as the sting of his fingernails biting into his palms.

_After everything, she picked **him.**_

Julian was angry enough to kill; he felt that in his bones. Julian could destroy Tommy-boy if he wanted, could make him scream in pain or reduce him to a gibbering wreck. He'd grown powerful, and recent events had turned him irrational—and that made him dangerous. He was in the mood to ruin, hurt, demolish—But not Jenny. Furious as Julian was, he was not angry at her. How could he be? He realized he loved her, young as they both were. He could never hurt her, even though she'd just hurt him. None of this was Jenny's fault, not really.

_She's just too good._

Julian saw that now. That was why she needed him, and vice versa. Thoughts of Jenny had a calming effect; the memory of her eyes made him sane. Everything was clear, suddenly. Julian knew what he had to do, but first he needed to calm down. Anger still roiled within him, black and dangerous as waves in a storm, and the power that rolled off him warped and thickened the air.

Any human who happened upon Julian now would avoid him on instinct, some ancient predator-prey reflex. That must be prevented. A deep breath—in through the nose, out through the mouth—then he turned and slammed his fist into the nearest building. Or rather, _through_ the nearest building. An aura of black antimatter surrounded Julian's arm like a gauntlet, twisting reality and rendering the brick as malleable as water.

It was an aimless release of power and anger, but it did the trick. When Julian withdrew, he'd managed to rein in some of his fury, and the magic flickered around his body like dying black flames. A less perceptive human wouldn't notice anything unusual about the fledgeling demon. Until, of course, it was too late.

Instead of heading back towards town though, Julian marched deeper into the ugly pit of city. It was Halloween, and he was going to have some fun. These streets were not as abandoned as they seemed, and it was only a matter of time before he found a playmate.

Sure enough, Julian knew the exact moment the thuggy guys started following him. Feigning unaware, Julian wandered further down Montevideo. As he passed one of the few flickering street lights Julian murmured "_myrkr_," snuffing out the faint electronic glow. None of his pursuers seemed to notice. To their delight, Julian took a turn down a blind alley—he could feel the surge of predatory glee behind him. At the end of the alley, Julian stopped dead. Smirked. _**Show time.**_

Julian spun and faced his would-be muggers, a dangerous smile quirking his lips. The guys were advancing, pocket knives suddenly withdrawn, but as Julian looked each one deliberately in the eye, they froze. He wasn't looking at them, but into them; feeling their minds out rather than staring them down. It was a new trick, peering in and coaxing out phobias so that he could read them.

First, the stocky guy with swarthy skin—_oh, that's interesting_—and then the malnourished looking one who couldn't have been more than fifteen—_well, that's a bit ironic, actually._

The teenager spooked first and rushed the white-haired boy with his switchblade thrust out like a lance (terrible form, Julian remarked mentally.) The shadowling skewered him with a glance, making the young assailant slow long enough to notice that there were things on his body—crawling, hissing things with spiny legs and hard carapaces. Cockroaches, naturally.

"Wh-what the—" The teen trembled violently, stomping his feet at the little beasts, but they were on him not the ground, so it did no good. Promptly (and anti-climactically, Julian thought,) the kid turned tail and ran.

Meanwhile, the stocky one was inching forward—slowly, cautiously, but with intent in his beady dark eyes. Julian spun, grinning coldly. This fear was a little more complicated, but that was alright because Julian was ready for a challenge. He locked eyes with the approaching thug. The man's step stuttered, but then he was moving again, determined, until— 

The thug stopped, disbelief plain on his face. He was trying to come at Julian, but his foot had hit up against something. He kicked out, pushed with his hands, threw his body forward, but he couldn't budge the invisible wall. The guy tried to circumvent, but his left and right were blocked off as well. As anticipated, he began to panic. Julian watched, head tilted, smile uncanny, as the man tried to retreat but only succeeded in crashing back against yet another wall. 

"Let me out!" He tried to scream, but no sound escaped the transparent prison.

As the claustrophobic man sunk to his knees with a silent whimper, Julian tossed his head back and laughed. It really was funny—a terrified, grimy mime trapped in his invisible box.

He took a moment to savor the scene before nodding a goodbye at the insensible man and walking away with an added bounce in his step. The illusions would fade, and the thugs would recover. Well, mostly. Nobody, obviously, would believe them if they recounted the incident; likely it would be credited to drugs. Julian, however, had gotten everything out of this encounter that he'd so desperately needed. He felt better now.

.

The moon bore witness to the events in the alleyway, cold and merciless as the world Julian came from. Now the shadowling could see that this was where he belonged: in dark, hopeless places, prowling like a predator.

_Thank you Jenny, for helping me see that._

Everything was so clear, now.

_Of course, she'll never understand._

But his eyes had been opened; Julian had been going about this all wrong. It was time to change game plans.


	17. Chapter 17

**Here it is: the final chapter of "Demon in My View." I planned a third and final installment to this story back when it started, and if I get enough interest I'll try to start writing it and hopefully start posting it within a year. So please review and let me know what you thought of this fic and whether or not you're interested in a sequel ^^**

.

_She can't understand it; it's not in her nature. But she'll accept it._

Julian grinned. It was so nice to finally have his mind right.

_She'll see things my way. I'll make her._

It was time to go home now; it was getting quite late; and Julian's mock-mother would start to worry at some point. At the mouth of the alley, he paused to laugh a short, giddy laugh. All this was just a bit of fun-and it _was_ fun. It occurred to him that he'd never felt better in his life. The great release of power left him tired, true, but also content and...balanced-feeling. All of that magic had been building up in him for years, buzzing in his veins and banging against the walls of his skull. No amount of pointless parlor tricks could quell that much raw magic.

This stunt had left him temporarily emptied of it, but he was filled with something else: fear. Not his own, of course-because what in this world did Julian have to be afraid of?-but that of his victims. It seemed to buoy him, to make him high and giddy. It was delicious. And _damn_. Now Julian saw what he could really _do_. He was powerful; no, he was _invincible_. All this time, he'd thought he was something close to human-different in species, but similar in many aspects. How wrong he'd been! He was more than human, potentially almost God-like in his power; a demonic force still in the development process. It was intoxicating, to be feared, to be the predator, the one in control. It was a rush, and Julian knew he would seek it out again.

Not tonight-tonight he would go home and watch the history channel's documentary on Samhain with his mother. When it go late enough, he'd fake a yawn and go to his room, though he'd be too wired to sleep. He could play the Halloween mix tape he'd made with Jenny a few years ago, or watch the Nightmare on Elm Street marathon that one of the channels was running. In the morning, Julian would meet Jenny at their usual street corner and act like absolutely nothing had happened.

But that's not what happened. At least, not exactly. When Julian got to his house, Jenny was waiting on his porch. The blonde caught sight of her approaching friend and bounded over to wrap him in a hug.

"Jenny...?" Julian instinctively put his arms around her, returning the embrace.

"I was looking all over for you," Jenny murmured into Julian's shoulder, "I was worried."

"I'm fine," he replied. He was rubbing Jenny's back like he always did when she needed comforting. "Are you-"

"I'm sorry," she cut him off, "I'm so sorry. The way I acted-It wasn't fair, and you're the last person I've ever wanted to hurt, and I just-I'm so sorry."

"It's okay," Julian told her, not knowing what else to say. "Everything's okay."

"You're my best friend, and I love you so much," Jenny was saying in a rush, "but I _can't_ love you like that because everything would be so messed up, and Tom's my boyfriend, and-"

"I understand," Julian lied, "Sh, you don't need to get so upset, okay?"

"Don't make me choose," Jenny whispered, "please don't ever make me choose."

"I won't," Julian promised, and he was telling the truth. When the time came, he wouldn't be giving Jenny a choice.


End file.
